James mccartney



(No-Model.)

J. McGARTNEY.

PINGUSHION.

No. 571,169. Patented Nov. 10, 1896.-

WITNESSES. l/VVE/VTOR 6W I If m: nonms PEYER5 co, Pum'ou'mu, WASHINGTON, n. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT FFICE.

JAMES MoO ARTNEY, on NEW YORK, N. Y.

PINCUSHION.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 571,169, dated November 10, 1896. Application filed February 26 1896. Serial No. 580,862. (No model.)

To coZZ whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, JAMES MOCARTNEY, a

citizen of the United States, and a resident of New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in a Combined Pincushion and Receptacle, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to an improved combined pincushion and receptacle; and it consists, substantially, in a cushion formed of hinged sections and containing areceptacle having a concealed spring-lock which secures said sections together about said receptacle and which may be operated to free said sections by a pin driven into the cushion at a predetermined point.

In accordance with my invention I preserve the usual form of the cushion, but divide it on a central transverse line into two sections, which are hinged together and in the lower one of which is provided the receptacle, while the upper section of the cushion serves as a cover for said receptacle and contains a concealed guide for directing the pin which is intended to free the lock for the purpose of permitting the said upper section to be opened from the lower section and expose said receptacle. The receptacle is intended to receive and conceal jewelry or other valuables, and being within the cushion of usual outline its presence will not be known or suspected by persons disentitled to that knowledge. The lock being concealed and varying in position in diiferent cushions adds further security to the contents of the inclosed receptacle.

The nature of the invention and the details of construction pertaining thereto may be more fully understood from the description hereinafter presented, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a top view, partly broken away, of a pincushion constructed in accordance with and embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal section of same on the dotted line 2 2 of Fig. 1 and showing the pin for disengaging the lock in position to effect this result. Fig. 3 is an enlarged detached sectional view of the locking and unlocking devices on the dotted line 2 2 of Fig. 1, and

Fig. 4 is a vertical transverse section. of a portion of the cushion on the dotted line 4 4 of Fig. 3.

In the drawings, A designates the cushion as a whole, and, as more clearly illustrated in Fig. 1, the said cushion is divided along its horizontal transverse center to form the upper and lower sections, (lettered B 0 respectively,) which are secured together at one edge by the hinges D, and at their facing surfaces are provided with the boards of wood or other stiifmaterial F, respectively, to the edges of which thetextile covering of the cushion" is secured, and between which and said coveringjthe filling material G is held.

The cushion A is in the conventional outline of a pincushion and is intended so to be in order to detract from the idea that a receptacle or box is contained within the cushion.

The central portion of the board F, constituting the upper surface of the lower section 0 of the cushion, is cut away, as illustrated more clearly in Figs. 2 and 4, and receives within the outline of the opening formed therein the receptacle H, which, as illustrated, is rectangular in outline when viewed from above, and has a concave bottom I, which conforms to the outline of the lower surface of the cushion. 1

The receptacle H may be of tin or other convenient material and is provided along its upper edges, more particularly along its front edge, with the flange J, which serves as a means, in connection with the catch L, for locking the two sections of the cushion together. The flange J is provided with an opening a, through which the catch L projects when the upper section B is closed downward upon the lower section 0, as illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3, and the edge of said catch bein g spring pressed engages the lower surfcae of the said flange J and thereby locks the sections of the cushion together.

Within the upper section B of the cushion is secured, preferably to the board E, the inverted-cone-shaped guide Z), which is open at both ends, its lower contracted end being directly above the catch L. The cone-shaped guide 1) has secured to it the spring cl, to which the catch L is rigidly affixed. The purpose of the guide I) is to direct the pin 6 downward metal having the central groove f, into which the pin a is directed by the cone-guide b.

The catch L operates as a spring-latch, and when the upper section B of the cushion is closed downward the said catch will pass against the edge of the slot a and be moved therefrom, owing to the rounded edge 9 on the catch, and upon the passage of the said catch L through the slot ct the spring cl will restore the catch L to its normal position, in which, as illustrated in Fig. 3, its outer edges will engage the under surface of the flange J and lock the two sections of the cushion together.

The cone-shaped guide I) is concealed within the filling G of the upper section B and will be arranged below a predetermined point on the upper surface of the textile fabric covering the cushion, in order that the owner may know at which point to insert the pin e for the purpose of reaching the said guide I).

The position of the cone-shaped guide b,carried by the upper section B, and the slot a, formed in the flange J, will Vary with the different cushions, in order that the possessor of one cushion will not know the location of the locking devices in other cushions. The flange J thus not only affords a stiffening edge around the receptacle H,but also f urnishesa means for changingthe position of the locking devices, whereby greater security is attained. The pin 6 is not left in the cone 1), but is simply there inserted whenever it is desired to unlock the upper section B from the lower section 0, and as soon as the said sections have been unlocked one from the other the said pin 6 is withdrawn.

The filling Gin the upper and lower sections B O serve to receive the pins as usual, and from the external appearance of the on shion it will not be known that a locked box or receptacle is concealed therein.

The bottom of the receptacle is made concave, as shown, in order to increase thecapacity of the receptacle, and more particularly, its lower surface being substantially conformed to the lower surface outline of the cushion, that the receptacle may have no tendency at its ends and sides to wear the cushion or alter its usual shapes. The filling in the lower section of the cushion completely incloses the sides, ends, and bottom of the receptacle, and the cushion as a whole, so far as appearances go, has the usual conventional outline with nothing about it to indicate the presence of a receptacle.

The invention is not limited to any special position for the locking devices or the guide leading thereto.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The pincushion A composed of the sections B, C, hinged together and each containing the filling material G,said sections having the substantially flat meeting surfaces, combined with the receptacle H embedded in the filling material of the lower section O, as shown, and means for locking said sections together; substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

2. The pincushionA composed of the sections B, G, hinged together and each containing the filling material G, said sections having the substantially flat meeting surfaces, combined with the receptacle H embedded in the filling material of the lower section C, as shown, the flange J along the edge of said receptacle, the spring-catch on the upper section B to engage said flange, and the concealed guide for directing a pin to said catch for freeing the latter from said flange; substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

Signed at New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, this 24th day of February, A. D. 1896.

JAMES MCOARTNEY. Witnesses:

CHAS. C. GILL, E. Jos. BELKNAP. 

